Two missing-person cases have different outcomes

The cases of two missing men ended Tuesday with vastly different outcomes: a Davie resident made it home safe, while a Coconut Creek retiree was found dead in a canal.

No foul play is suspected in the death of Joseph Rabitz, 90, who wandered from his Coconut Creek condo Sunday night and apparently fell into the nearby canal, said Tony Avello, Coconut Creek police spokesman.

"He was just a dear, sweet man who just loved his family," said Barbara Eichman, of Parkland, whose son is married to Rabitz's granddaughter. "It was a devastating loss to the family."

Meanwhile, a 78-year-old Davie man with dementia managed to drive home by early Tuesday, within hours of his being reported missing, police said.

Police were concerned for Andre Schreiber's safety Monday night because he didn't immediately return home after leaving a friend's house a short drive away.

Schreiber may have gotten home late because roads in his neighborhood were under construction, said Davie police Sgt. Greg Gasse.

"With dementia and his normal route distorted, maybe that was enough" to disorient him, Gasse said.

In the Coconut Creek case, officers determined Rabitz left his home in the 3900 block of Carambola Circle North at about 11 p.m. Sunday. They found a note on his refrigerator that said he watched a basketball game on TV and went for a stroll, Avello said.

He had dementia, was deaf and legally blind, and used a three-pronged metal cane.

Soon after Rabitz's disappearance, officers spent several hours searching for him, with help from police dogs and helicopters, Avello said. On Tuesday morning, when officers resumed the search, they found Rabitz's body in the canal.

The Broward Medical Examiner's Office will determine the cause of death, police said.

Rabitz, a retired Realtor, and his wife of 62 years, Beatrice Rabitz, moved from Bridgeport, Conn., to South Florida in 1991. The couple relocated to live near their only child, Adrienne Cohen, and her family, said Cohen, of Parkland.

Rabitz loved spending time with his family, including two grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, his family said.

His daily walks across the neighborhood highlighted how exercise always was a priority for him, his family said. He was a physical fitness instructor during World War II, while serving as an Air Force sergeant for three years, Cohen said.